American style fridge freezer with ice and water dispenser
It all started with the fridge having a knocking sound, and discovered it was coming from the fan behind the shelves in the fridge section. The fridge temp indicator was normal but the fridge didn't feel cold. Eventually the noise stopped and the indicator started to flash at the temp set. At this point the water dispenser stopped working. I removed cover behind trays and found the fan completely iced up and not rotating. I thawed out the motor and plugged it back in but still not working. I am thinking the ice has caused the motor to burn out! I am now seaching the web for ideas on how to repair and whether the fan for circulating the cold air in the fridge would cause the water to stop flowing perhaps frozen? Anybody had this problem before? Where's the best site for spares. By the way freezer operating normally.

Paul, July 2007

Samsung rs21dcsv frdge fan moter is not working. I checked it sepreatley at12dc connected with yellow and gray wires.fan moter is run.plz let me know where is wrong.evaporator was fully iced.i am comerical refrigerant eng.this is my house fridge.thanks

waheed, January 2014

Great service by the guys at www.agsrefrigeration.co.uk samsung didnt want to know has our fridge is more than five years old and i also found out that their so called engineers are not their own they contract the work out like everyone else anyway in the end i got the contact details of agsrefrigeration from which local they attended and found the fault that all the other so called approved engineers from samsung could'nt a simple wiring fault with the door connections which the guy repaired. These guys fly straight and tell it like it is no flies on them.

Jimmy, March 2013

Samsung model rs21dcns fridge fan not working and no water dispenser?

hi
just a note to say we tried everything to fix our problem
ie defrost - make drainage hole bigger replace fan..

fault always came back - we then fitted kit purchased via ebay - cheapest we could find , guy who sells them was very helpfull and knowledgeable , will give free info before you buy etc ..

his item on ebay 280596204942

full step by step youtube video instructions come with kit - plus you can call the guy if you get stuck etc

cant recommend enough - if you have any samsung problems give him a call

ally 07407 734 204

lorna, January 2013

Well it's now sorted. Samsung are still coming out free of charge to repair and the engineer replaced parts and sorted my dispenser issue. Something to do with mixing the water pipes up but can't see how. If anyone has same problem with a frozen water bottle then be sure you put back together carefully. Hope the new parts keep it going a few more years

Leeroy, January 2013

I've done all the above. My water bottle was also frozen solid so removed this and thawed also. Problem now however is when water dispenses it carries on for about 10 seconds after you want to stop. Any ideas on this?

Leeroy, December 2012

Thanks for the tip Alan we called agsrefrigeration and they came out and found and fix our fault which everyone else seemed to unable to find. Once again cheers and anyone else if you have a persisting problem try these guys www.agsrefrigeration.co.uk.

Jeremy, December 2012

I had this problem, called Samsung and was told that the fridge was out of warranty and that the only thing they would do is give me the service centre number.

In the end I decided to do the job myself.

I unscrewed the top panel, starting with the top screw, and then two more lower down.

Then I removed the bottom panel, which has six screws, two behind the removable panels, two holding onto a piece of plastic piping andd two right at the bottom.

The panels were held in by clips which were slightly difficult to release.

Then I unplugged the fan assembly - two plugs, bottom one was blue - and removed the entire bottom assembly.

I then unscrewed the fan assembly from the polystyrene four screws, one hiding behind some metal attachment.

It was ten possible to see the ice build up and defrost it, and enlarge the drain hole.

james r, August 2012

You will find that sometimes that when you try to do these things or buy these wonder kits on ths net you can sometimes do more damage that good has we nearly found out ourselves. Anyway we had the same problem and when we plug the fan back in it didnt start however lucky for us and after so many different engineers we got lucky with someone who does work directly for the manufacturer he came and look at it and found a faulty wiring connection to the fan which once it stops circulating the cold air around the compartment it will just sit at the bottom of the cabinet hence the freezing of the water. Also there was a scortch mark on the thermal fuse which the previous engineers hadnt noticed that why it was icing up so often anyway he rectified the problem and our fridge has been as good as gold. www.agsrefrigeration.co.uk.

Alan, July 2012

Just had a similar problem,read through some of the answers on this forum and decided to use ApplianceDIYrepairs.com.Delivery of repair kit to Spain 3 days.Easy to follow instructions.Couple of hours to do.Now working perfectly.Highly recommended.Also thanks for the info. on this site.

Jack Holmes, March 2012

hi
just a note to say we tried everything to fix our problem
ie defrost - make drainage hole bigger replace fan..

fault always came back - we then fitted kit purchased via ebay - cheapest we could find , guy who sells them was very helpfull and knowledgeable , will even give free info before you but etc ..

his item on ebay 280596204942

full step by step youtube video instructions come with kit - plus you can call the guy if you get stuck etc

cant recomend enough - if you have any samsung problems give him a call

ally 07407 734 204

lorna

lorna, September 2011

Great thread. Had all the same symptoms on my 7 year old RS21 - noisy fan, followed by no water then fridge not cooling well at the top. Followed the instructions on this thread on how to dismantle and get rid of ice build up which stops the fan running. Made the drainage hole under the fan bigger, re-assembled and everything seems fine. Time will tell if this is a short term fix or not.

Billy Wig, September 2011

hi copied and pastted from previos post - if out of warranty you can get diy kits ..

samsung fridge freezer problems ?
RS21 NOT COOLING IN FRIDGE - NOISY

RSH1 NOT COOLING IN FRIDGE - NOISY

i hope this post helps you save a lot of time by not messing about trying all the weird and wonderfull help/tips that you can find on the internet

we have tried every help/tip thats availabale on the internet reguarding this problem - but you cant solve this without replacing faulty parts ... yes you can keep appliance working for another month by defrosting it but this is only really delaying problem ..

we came across this guy on you tube who is an expert on samsung fridge freezers he is authorized samsung repairer and has repaired over 3000 appliances..

http://www.youtube.com/user/SamsungFridgeFreezer

we explained what we have tried so far etc , and he said everyone says the same thing ..bottom line is there is no quick fix - the only way to totaly cure fault is to replace the faulty components .. he does a kit which is available on ebay ...

RS21 KIT Item number: 280596204942

RSH1 KIT Item number: 280583238579

these are the cheapest that i can find , when we bought kit it was a good £30 cheaper than anywhere else

with this guy your not just buying spares they offer full back service via the samsung trained engineers all free of charge -

video on how to fit part etc also with kit

if you check this guy feed back you will see how may people he has helped ...

he tel no is below most of the youtube videos so i dont think he will mind me putting on here ..

samsung repairs - spares - advice

tel 07407 734 204

CALUM, May 2011

hi copied and pastted from previos post - if out of warranty you can get diy kits ..

samsung fridge freezer problems ?
RS21 NOT COOLING IN FRIDGE - NOISY

RSH1 NOT COOLING IN FRIDGE - NOISY

i hope this post helps you save a lot of time by not messing about trying all the weird and wonderfull help/tips that you can find on the internet

we have tried every help/tip thats availabale on the internet reguarding this problem - but you cant solve this without replacing faulty parts ... yes you can keep appliance working for another month by defrosting it but this is only really delaying problem ..

we came across this guy on you tube who is an expert on samsung fridge freezers he is authorized samsung repairer and has repaired over 3000 appliances..

http://www.youtube.com/user/SamsungFridgeFreezer

we explained what we have tried so far etc , and he said everyone says the same thing ..bottom line is there is no quick fix - the only way to totaly cure fault is to replace the faulty components .. he does a kit which is available on ebay ...

RS21 KIT Item number: 280596204942

RSH1 KIT Item number: 280583238579

these are the cheapest that i can find , when we bought kit it was a good £30 cheaper than anywhere else

with this guy your not just buying spares they offer full back service via the samsung trained engineers all free of charge -

video on how to fit part etc also with kit

if you check this guy feed back you will see how may people he has helped ...

he tel no is below most of the youtube videos so i dont think he will mind me putting on here ..

samsung repairs - spares - advice

tel 07407 734 204

loran, May 2011

CONTACT Samsung. 0330 SAMSUNG. THe fridges even out of warranty are still covered for the following parts:
Evaporator Cover
Thermal Fuse
Defrost Sensor
Defrost Heater
Drainage Heater
They will send an engineer as Chris said and if the problem is with any of the above components it fixed FOC plus no call out charge. No need to spend £150

EJ_Hawk, May 2011

samsung fridge freezer problems ?
RS21 NOT COOLING IN FRIDGE - NOISY

RSH1 NOT COOLING IN FRIDGE - NOISY

i hope this post helps you save a lot of time by not messing about trying all the weird and wonderfull help/tips that you can find on the internet

we have tried every help/tip thats availabale on the internet reguarding this problem - but you cant solve this without replacing faulty parts ... yes you can keep appliance working for another month by defrosting it but this is only really delaying problem ..

we came across this guy on you tube who is an expert on samsung fridge freezers he is authorized samsung repairer and has repaired over 3000 appliances..

http://www.youtube.com/user/SamsungFridgeFreezer

we explained what we have tried so far etc , and he said everyone says the same thing ..bottom line is there is no quick fix - the only way to totaly cure fault is to replace the faulty components .. he does a kit which is available on ebay ...

RS21 KIT Item number: 280596204942

RSH1 KIT Item number: 280583238579

these are the cheapest that i can find , when we bought kit it was a good £30 cheaper than anywhere else

with this guy your not just buying spares they offer full back service via the samsung trained engineers all free of charge -

video on how to fit part etc also with kit

if you check this guy feed back you will see how may people he has helped ...

he tel no is below most of the youtube videos so i dont think he will mind me putting on here ..

samsung repairs - spares - advice

tel 07407 734 204

calum, April 2011

We bought our Samsung fridge freezer in 2006, and have just had a problem with the fridge side not working. We bought a repair kit from Appliance DIY Repairs and did it ourselves. It took us just under an hour to do it, and the instructions supplied make it so easy to do it. We would therefore highly recommend Appliance DIY Repairs to anyone that has a problem with their Samsung fridge.

LLoyd, February 2011

I confirm that ice build-up in the fan assembly and back panel heat exchanger caused noise and temperature malfunction in my Samsung fridge. I take about 90 minutes to disassemble, clean and reassemble.

As preventive maintenance, I suggest you unplug your fridge once a year with the door open for about 24 hours.

Liena, February 2011

My RS21DCNS unit is now over 5 years old and also developed the noisy fan followed by a the water unit not working and a temp of 14deg in the fridge which lasted about 12 hrs before cooling again. I spoke with samsung who informed me the unit was out of warranty but all RS21DCNS Models are due a free visit to fit modified parts that will stop this happening. I am awaiting the service engineer to visit to fit the parts.

Chris, November 2010

Yep, exactly the same problem with my Samsung RSHDTMH. It is 2 years old now, and stopped working after recently making a bit of a grating noise. As per previous posts this proved to be the fan grating against the build up of ice behind the cover at the back of the fridge. It was fairly easy to dismantle the cover and unscrew the fan housing to remove the build up of ice with a hairdryer.
I will look out for the tell tale noise in future, as I would think that if this happens too often the mtor on the fan will burn out.

Mal, October 2010

Followed Neil's advice, seems to be working perfectly. Was advised by an engineer to just "throw it away and get a new one". This has saved us a fortune! Thanks!

Wangmaster, October 2010

My samsung rsh1dbbp had the same problem freezer ok fridge showing 3 degrees,followed Neil's advice and now working fine,just make sure fridge is fully thawed before trying to remove panel,ice build up holds panel solid.

Les, October 2010

Just followed the instructions and fridge starting to cool again now! Thanks for help, hope it fixes it - if not at least I know what to do if I need to get the repair kit.

Thanks all
Gwyn

Gwyn B, September 2010

I did as no 2 said removed fan and defrosted put back on and seems to be workinf fine took 1.5 hours thanks for your help




Neil

Neil Kelloway, August 2010

This is a simple and easy fault to repair as I have just completed one myself.

First and most importantly turn off the fridge and remove the plug.

To remove the fan cover you will need to remove the lighting unit cover first (1 screw). Once you have undone the screw it will then just pop off. Undo the screws of the light unit but leave one just to hold it in place until you have removed the cooler unit.
Remove the water cooler (2 screws) I left mine attached to the hoses and just moved it out of the way gently.
Remove the screws from the cooler unit and gently pop the cover off. It may be a bit frozen so don't force it.
Once removed you will see the cooling assembly behind it and the fan is located in the cover.
remove the last screw from the light unit and follow the wires from the fan up behind the light unit and remove the plug.
The whole unit cover will come away with the fan assembly attached. Remove the fan and you will see where the ice has built up. Either leave it to defrost or speed it up by using a hairdryer.

Remember water and electricity don't mix.

Once you have removed all the ice from the unit replace the fan into its housing. Now before replacing the cover check that the drain hole located below the cooler unit is clear (tray underneath with a hole in mine has 3 little holes). put the cover back in place and plug the fan back in.
Before completely securing in place switch the fridge back on to see if the fan is working.
Reassemble the unit and your done.
I am not a service engineer but managed to do the fix myself in about 11/2 hrs.
I hope this is not too long winded and helps.
this will cost you upto £250 to replace the unit if it is out of warranty.

TW, August 2010

i had ice build up in fridge fan took all apart and defrosted made drain hole a bit bigger and had no trouble since hope this helps.

JULIE, July 2010

I had the same issue.
What it turned out to be was the fan not running due to ice buildup around the fan enclosure.
The Fan is accessible from inside the fridge. Simply remove all shelving and you'll see a panel at the back lower part of the fridge compartment. The front cover of the panel probably says Twin Cooler on it..you'll have to remove the zigzag pipe in front of it to remove the panel too.

But anyway, remove the panel and you will see the fan mounted on the reverse with the impeller sat inside the insulation panel. Simply remove the four mounting screws to remove the fan and use something like a hairdryer to defrost and remove the ice. Also there should be a water run off at the bottom of the fan which I had to make a little bigger as this was blocked too. It's polystyrene and so a sharp knife did the trick.
20 mins later having defrosted the ice around the fan completely I then re-assembled and bingo! fridge would then cool.

before I put the fan back together I held the door switch closed to infer the door was shut and I watched the fan start up. THis made sure the fan had not burnt out. I then completed the box up and the rest is history.

Hope this helps.
If you want a picture let me know and I'll post one.

Becks, June 2010

I had exactly the same fault on my american style side by side Samsung fridge freezer about 8 months ago. My fridge freezer model is RS21DABB, but I think the parts are the same for all of them.

I found people on the internet who had bought a repair kit from a company called APPLIANCE DIY REPAIRS and done it all themselves.

It took me a minute or so to find them as they are obviously not a major supplier of all appliance spares, but when I emailed them, they confirmed that the kit I needed would be suitable for my fridge freezer.

I did the whole repair in just over 45 minutes and it cost me a fraction of the quotes I had to do it from service companies. In fact some service companies said they wouldn't touch them and told me to phone Samsung. When I did phone Samsung, they offered no help at all, and told me to phone a local service centre.

I almost fell over when they gave me the quote to repair it, so I thought I'd look for more info on the internet first. My fridge is now quiet, cold and I've got my drinking water back again. I recommended the company to a couple of friends of mine with the same type of fridge freezers and theirs have both been working properly since as well.

I am delighted that I have been able to fix my own fridge and save a load of money as well!!

Mrs Read, May 2010

I have the same problem with my fridge, i have stripped out the back panel and defrosted around the fan on a couple of occasions with a hair dryer, the problem still returns and is becoming more frequent. After reading the problems other owners have had i'm beginning to think it is the defrost heater. Can anyone advise on the solution and location within the fridge of the heater, fuse etc.

Jim Dockerty, January 2010

motor is available on internet fo £50 easy to fit and will sort dispenser water problems and fridge temp 4my samsung.co.uk peice of piss to fit do not get ripped off by lies hope this helps

tommy, October 2009

I phoned up samsung and complained, even though it was out of warrenty. Also mentioned watch dog. They came and fixed it the following day and gave me an extra 3 years warrenty.

Alison, September 2009

thanks for putting the samsung telephone number on. i rang it and they came and fixed it the following day.

pjm, August 2009

i have had the same problem with water stopping and fan freezing just contacted samsung and they are going to send a repair man out for free this is a common fault and they have extended the warranty to five years on this fault i found this out by going to the samsung site and complaining about this problem and got a reply today and a number to ring 0845 (726 7864)

mark a, July 2009

I have an RS21NGRS so it doesn't have the water dispenser. Same as everyone else. Loud noises and fridge showed 2 degrees, but inside told a different story. The food was heating up. Turned it off/on and the fridge temperature was a wacking 21 degrees! Had an evaporator cover replaced last week, it worked great for a day. Then the horrendous noises returned. Have rang the Samsung customer services who confirmed that there is a known fault, and they would have an engineer to me in 2 days. Apparently their is a retro fix and so the problem will not return. I shall wait and see.

Ange, June 2009

After 4 years problem free use, my Samsung developed exactly the same symptoms. I defrosted the fan and ice build up around the evaporator panel and it now works fine - The only point I would add is to make sure that the small hole in the narrow metal tray below the evaporator panel inside the fridge is free of ice as this carries water produced on the defrost cycle via a tube to a plastic tray at the rear of the fridge. You know the tube is clear when water poured in to the metal tray immediately runs away. If you fail to do this ice will very soon build up inside the fridge again.

Michael, June 2009

My fridge is the samsung rs21dcsv and we Bought the fridge freezer five years ago thought it was great all that room with hungrey kids ... How wrong could we be... had nothing but problems less than three years in samsung did nothing till watchdog stepped in got extended warranty had the parts replaced 6 months down the line same again rang samsung didn't want to no the part was only guarenteed for 90 days and guess wat the extended warranty ceased 6 months following the repair had the fridge for 5 years won't buy another samsung product. New fridge search and sending this one to the fridge graveyard. My advce DONT BUY not worth the hassle or the money

Amanda, April 2009

YOU NEED the fan to be replaced mostly 12 dc 3000 RPM

seetha, February 2009

you need a samsung rs 21 repair kit,
check our web site for info.. we are samsung agents and can advise you on how exactly to cure prob....

www.atsscotland.co.uk

yes you can buy parts via google but you will probably be buying old stock which will result on this fault re-occurring quite quickly..

what you need is the latest version of the cure from samsung ..we stock them..

when you buy from us we supply a diy step by step guide on how to repair prob...guide includes full colour photos of each stage of the repair..

and most importantly you can talk to a samsung refrigeration engineer direct if you have an probs whilst fitting..

greg, January 2009

I had the fan problem and ice build-up back in Feb/March 2007. I removed the entire back panel, then removed the original Samsung fan. I defrosted the ice build-up, installed a computer fan - a 12v (max) d.c. fan approx. the same size as the Samsung fan. This was wired to a variable 12v, 9v 6v style transformer-plug, the wires being passed through the edge of the plastic housing that I replaced and then through the gap between the fridge door and side wall. It's been running perfectly since then. The total cost was zero as I had the kit already but if you visit your local PC repairer you'll get the fan and the transformer for less than a tenner.
Now however, Samsung appear to have confirmed the design failings with the original unit and are offering free retro-fixes. I pointed this problem out to Samsung in Feb 2007 but their reply was very non-committal.

Mike in Horwich, December 2008

The thermal fuse for the heating element has blown. The frost is a normal process, but in normal operating conditions, the heater (yes, heater) will periodically come on and melt the frost. The heater does not melt the frost; the frost builds up, the motor stops working because of the frost build-up. It costs $5.

Fitz, October 2008

This problem was highlighted on BBC Watchdog in April this year. Samsung have agreed to extend the warranty to five years (from DOP) for this problem (tel. 0800 988 0123, there is an option for an enquiry following the Watchdog program!). My RS21WCNS had this problem last September (at the time Samsung wouldn’t admit to there being a significant problem). I am quite sure they were fully aware of the problem, because if it was under warranty the would send somebody out, if not they told me to adjust the temperature of the fridge! I "cured" myself by removing and thoroughly defrosting and drying the evaporator panel as described elsewhere, but the problem returned last weekend. I had mine repaired by a Samsung agent (FOC) after contacting Samsung and they replaced the evaporator cover, a thermistor (temperature sensor) and a thermal fuse. There was also a small piece of a wiring harness left over (hopefully no longer required!). I wasn’t there when the repair was carried out, I just have the left over parts.
What worries me it that the display on the front isn’t worth a candle, because even though the fridge and the freezer are affected by this and warmed up, the front display still displayed -20 and +4 for the freezer and fridge respectively. No errors were shown by the diagnostic mode either. Hopefully the problem will not return.
I hope this helps.

Jason, August 2008

I have the same problem with my Samsung RS21DCSV

This fridge is a real pain, If you google "samsung fridge ice build up" you can see that this is a very common problem. I have defrosted the ice around the fan and problem occured again and again. Now thinking of Enlarging drain hole or making new one by drilling hole through panel where water pours out through the front.

Will this work?

Day, April 2008

I have the same problem with my Samsung RS21DCSV

This fridge is a real pain, If you google "samsung fridge ice build up" you can see that this is a very common problem. I have defrosted the ice around the fan and problem occured again and again. Now thinking of Enlarging drain hole or making new one by drilling hole through panel where water pours out through the front.

Will this work?

Day, April 2008

Bad luck, my fan restarted when it was defrosted, you can buy spares on the net for about 30 quid (make sure to unplug the fridge first! before changing it)

white knight, August 2007

I have exactly the same problem, plus the water container has frozen up, when thawed the water dispenser works however the container is now burst due to ice expanding

Jim

Jim, July 2007

i understand where your coming from pete
but unfortunately this is a prob that you cant fix by just defrosting and cutting bits of the components away..
problems are also with sensors located elsewhere in fridge..which need to be replaced along with a modified cover panel.

your solution does work . but its only short term and fault will re-occur.

greg

www.atsscotland.co.uk

g, July 2007

For a lower cost solution to the fan problem, I a tip in http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=227697, which I interpreted this way:
Simply take the panels out from the inside of the fridge, top one first (1 screw, then three more), bottom one next (4 screws), you may need to use a hair dryer to ease the bottom one out due to ice buildup. Remove the fan from the bottom panel (4 screws), then remove the ice buildup around the fan (I poured boiling water over it in the end). Enlarge the drain hole at the bottom of the fan chamber. In the end I cut all the polystyrene away and put a narrower piece of tape across the slot.

pete, July 2007

you need a samsung rs 21 repair kit,
check our web site for info.. we are samsung agents and can advise you on how exactly to cure prob....

www.atsscotland.co.uk

yes you can buy parts via google but you will probably be buying old stock which will result on this fault re-occurring quite quickly..

what you need is the latest version of the cure from samsung ..we stock them..

when you buy from us we supply a diy step by step guide on how to repair prob...guide includes full colour photos of each stage of the repair..

and most importantly you can talk to a samsung refrigeration engineer direct if you have an probs whilst fitting..

greg www.atsscotland.co.uk, July 2007

i have had a similar problem i have been told that it is either heat sensor or heaterpack as the fridge needs to defrost and if this does not work it will cause the heat evaporator to build up with ice causing the fan to ice up burn out. you can order spares via samsung google with model of fridge which will give list suppliers for parts.

kadir, July 2007

water prob is related to temp/noise in fridge

repair kit/advice available

www.atsscotland.co.uk

greg, July 2007

please try

samsung authorised agents

www.atsscotland.co.uk

greg, July 2007

water freezed up in the water reservoir in the bottom of the fridge

ANTH, July 2007

samsung engineer 07786610965 will sort out all problems

airkool@hotmail.co.uk, July 2007

hi paul not to get you too excited but as soon as you find the answer please let me know on dougiedotcom@btinternet.com as i have the exact same problems with my fridge freezer, however i have so far found a few helpfull hints regarding the fridge temp but not the water problem(hoping they are going to be related on moneysaver.co.uk.
thanks dougie)

dougie, July 2007